[HISTORY: Adopted by the County Council of Wicomico County as L.
Wic. Co., 1965, ch. 3. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Referendum on local laws — See County Charter, Article
III.
Election Districts — See Ch. 31.
STATUTORY REFERENCES
Referendum — See Md. Const., Art. XVI.
Questions submitted to voters — See Election Law.
Reservation in Charter of power of referendum — See
Anno. Code of Md. (1957), Art. 25A, § 8.
A.
To be conducted by Board of Supervisors of Elections.
The Board of Supervisors of Elections of the county, established by a public
general law, shall constitute a special Board of the Election Supervisors
for the conduct of any referendum on any public local law or any part thereof,
as provided in Article III, Section 309, of the Charter, including any public
local law or any part thereof, authorizing any issue of bonds, certificates
of indebtedness, notes or other obligations of the county or renewal thereof.
B.
Petition; form. A petition for a referendum on any public
local law, or part thereof, enacted by the Council and subject to referendum
under Article III, Section 309, of the Charter shall be composed of one or
more sheets, each in substantially the following form:
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Referendum Petition
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We, the undersigned registered voters of Wicomico County, Maryland,
do hereby petition for a referendum vote on (the full text of the act or the
part of the act petitioned upon) entitled "AN ACT (inserting title)," enacted
by the County Council of Wicomico County, Maryland, at its (insert number
and year) Legislative Session.
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C.
Same; signatures, etc. Following such petition, there
shall be the signatures of the petitioners who shall be registered voters
of the county; opposite the signature of each signer, there shall appear his
residential address, including post office, and the district and precinct
in which he is registered for voting in the county. Below the signature of
each signer, his name shall appear in print or typed lettering. Below the
signature on each sheet of such petition, there shall appear an affidavit
made before a notary public for the state by the person procuring the signatures
thereon that, to said person's own personal knowledge, each signature
thereon is genuine and bona fide, and that, to the best of his knowledge,
information and belief, the signers are registered voters of the State of
Maryland and Wicomico County as set opposite their respective names. All sheets
duly filed of a petition for referendum on the same act shall constitute a
single petition for a referendum on that act. The total number of signatures
of different registered voters attached to the sheets constituting a single
petition, shall be 10% of the number of registered voters of the county at
the time the petition is filed.
D.
Same; filing. All sheets of a referendum petition shall
be filed with the Board of Elections not later than 60 days after enactment
of the legislation which is the subject of the referendum.
[Amended 2-15-1978 by Bill No. 1978-6; 3-4-2003
by Bill No. 2003-5]
E.
Same; notification of Council; public notice; holding. The Board of Elections shall promptly notify the Council of any petition so filed with it and whether or not any petition so filed is a valid petition requiring a referendum to be held under the Charter. If notified that the petition so filed is a valid petition requiring referendum to be held under this Charter, the Council shall give public notice, in such manner as it shall determine, that the act is without force and effect, pending the holding of the referendum thereon. However, an emergency measure, as defined in Section 308, Subsection (g), of the County Charter, shall remain in force from the date of its enactment notwithstanding the filing of such petition, but shall stand repealed 30 days after having been rejected by a majority of the qualified voters voting thereon. Such referendum shall be held at the next regular or special election (whichever first occurs) in the county for the election of any state or federal officer. The Board shall conduct any such referendum election and shall use the same voting machines or ballots or both as used by it generally for election purposes in the county.
[Amended 3-4-2003 by Bill No. 2003-5]
F.
Form of question on voting machine or ballots. The question
on the voting machine or ballot shall appear as follows: "Shall the (insert
brief informative description of act) Act become law?" If the referendum relates
only to a part of an act, then the question shall appear as follows: "Shall
the provisions (identifying them briefly) of the (insert brief informative
description of act) Act become law?" The vote shall be by "yes" or "no" on
the question.
G.
Return of election returns to Council; public notice.
Following the election, the Board of Election Supervisors shall promptly make
a return to the Council of the "yes" and "no" votes cast on the question.
If the majority of the votes are "yes," the act or part thereof voted upon
shall take effect in accordance with the Charter, and if the act is one authorizing
the issuance of any bonds, notes, certificates of indebtedness or other obligations
of the county or renewals thereof, such return of votes shall constitute an
approval by the voters of the issuance of such bonds, notes, certificates
of indebtedness or other obligations. Promptly after the return of votes,
the Council shall give public notice in such manner as it shall determine,
of the result thereof, and if the act or part thereof voted upon is approved,
of the effective date thereof.
[Added by L. Wic. Co., 1965, ch. 12]
The Board of Supervisors of Elections of Wicomico County, Maryland may
charge and shall be entitled to receive a fee of $1 for furnishing any report
or certificate requested by any person, relative to such person's age
or other pertinent information; and said Board shall be entitled to a fee
of $5 for the verification of the registration of those persons signing applications,
relative to the issuance of licenses for the sale of alcoholic beverages,
or for any other purpose, and all of such fees shall be paid over to the Director
of Finance of Wicomico County, Maryland, together with an itemized statement
thereof, quarterly, on January 15, April 15, July 15 and October 15 in each
and every year.
[Added 3-4-2003 by Bill No. 2003-5]
A.
The Board of Elections of the county shall constitute
a special Board of Elections for the review of any petitions to amend the
Charter as provided in Article XI, § 1102, of the Charter.
B.
Petition. The form, content, signors, information provided
by signors, circulators and affidavit of circulators of the petition shall
be in accordance with the Election Law Article of the Annotated Code of Maryland,
Title 6.
C.
Filing of petition.
(1)
A petition for the amendment of the Charter may not be
filed unless a sufficient number of signatures attached to the petition have
been written by the signers within six months of the date when the petition
is presented to the Board of Elections.
(2)
A petition shall be filed with the Board of Elections
not later than the second Monday in August in the year of the election at
which the question is to be voted on.
D.
Form of question on voting machine or ballots. The County
Attorney shall prepare and certify to the Board each question which shall
appear on the ballot. Each question shall be in accordance with the Election
Law Article of the Annotated Code of Maryland, Title 7.
